For more than 140 years, students have called the university home and lived next door to one another and the classrooms and buildings where they studied.;xNLx;;xNLx;We hope you enjoy this timeline of important moments in the story of how university housing has fostered a community of scholars dedicated to education. ;xNLx;;xNLx;Contact housing@uark.edu with any comments or contributions about housing at the University of Arkansas.
Buchanan Hall was the first men's residence hall at the University of Arkansas, then still known as Arkansas Industrial University. The hall was named for the university's sixth president, John L. Buchanan. "Buck Hall," as the students referred to it, opened in 1888 and served the university until 1937.
Hill Hall was named in honor of the third university president General Daniel Harvey Hill. It served as the men's residence hall and catered to student athletes prior to construction of Gibson Hall. In 1949, it was transitioned to the journalism department. It was razed in 1993 to allow for the expansion of Mullins Library.
Carnall Hall was the first female residence hall. It was named in honor of Ella Howison Carnall, an alumna and early female faculty member at university. It ceased function as a dormitory in the 1960s and was renovated in 2001 into the Inn at Carnall Hall, hotel and restaurant.
Gray Hall was one of the first dormitories for men on the University of Arkansas campus. Gray Hall was finished in 1906 and stood near where Mullins Library is today. It was named for Oliver C. Gray, a professor and commander of the military department at the university for many years. It was razed in 1966.
Gibson Hall was formerly Razorback Hall, which housed athletics. It was renamed Gibson Hall for a past director of University Housing, James Gibson.
Davis Hall, the university’s second residence hall for women, was named for Mary Anne Davis, an instructor of mathematics and English at the University of Arkansas for more than 46 years who also served as the university’s dean of women from 1911 to 1923. Construction began in 1941, and the building was dedicated on Nov. 7, 1942. Over the years, the hall has also been used to house the Army Specialized Training Corps during World War II, three different sororities from the 1960s to the early 1990s, and auxiliary offices of the School of Law, including the Legal Clinic, the Arkansas Law Review and the agricultural law program. Davis Hall became vacant in 2008 and was later renovated to house the Office of University Relations beginning in June 2011.
Camp Leroy Pond was built for veterans who became students at the university immediately after World War II. It was named in honor of Capt. Leroy Pond, a veteran from Washington Country and a graduate of the university (1938). Sadly, Pond did not survive the war. He was wounded in Germany in December, 1944 and died from his injuries in a hospital in England the next month. Back home at the University of Arkansas his wartime heroics were remembered and recognized with the creation of "Camp Leroy Pond" on campus — a housing area for male students who were returning home after the war. It was located south of Razorback Stadium in the area where Bud Walton Arena now stands.
Gregson Hall was named for William S. “Pop” Gregson. Between 1919-47, he was the secretary of the campus Y.M.C.A., Student Employment Services, Gregson Hall Student Union, director of religious activities, acting dean of men, emeritus professor and university chaplain. This hall opened as a residence hall in 1948. It was originally two buildings that were joined into one residence hall.
Holcombe Hall was named after Jobelle Holcombe, one of the founders of the Chi Omega sorority while a student on the U of A campus. She went on to be a founding member of the U of A's Phi Beta Kappa chapter, an English professor, dean of women, and the first woman to receive the distinction of the honorary Doctor of Laws on the U of A campus.
Buchanan-Droke Hall opened as a residence hall in 1954. The original men’s dormitory Buchanan Hall opened in 1888 and was torn down in 1937 at which time a new Buchanan Hall was approved to be built. The current dormitory was named for John Lee Buchanan and George Wesley Droke. Buchanan was president of the University of Arkansas from 1894-1902. George Wesley Droke was alumnus in 1880 and 1884, taught in the preparatory department from 1880-1885 and 1887-1891, taught in the mathematics department from 1894-1929, and was dean of the College of Arts and Sciences from 1915-1925.
